Have Your Chocolate & Eat It

If you have ever wanted an excuse to over indulge in some serious chocolate snacking, now is your chance, for chocolate manufacturers Xan Confections have come up with healthy chocolates that actually help with your heart, alleviate symptoms of PMT and have added vitamins for mums to be. Part of this healthy chocolates range include CocoPMS truffles, which claim to ease the pain of PMS due to the added anti-inflammatory compounds – chasteberry and bilberry, CocoHeart, which is designed to help maintain a healthy heart and CocoPreggers, infused with folic acid to benefit mothers-to-be. CocoBrain and CocoWell complete the ‘chocolates with benefits’ range.

CocoPreggers is the brainchild of the firm’s US president Kerry Johnson Anthony and a direct result of her own three pregnancies. She said, “Women I conversed with through online baby forums were consumed with thoughts of both chocolate and pre-natal health. We realized a product combining decadent chocolate with DHA and folic acid would be a natural, and soon after CocoPreggers was born.’ CocoPreggers truffles contain 200 mcg of folic acid (50 percent daily value) and 50 mg of vegetarian DHA. Adequate folic acid in healthful diets may help reduce a woman’s risk of delivering a child with a brain or spinal cord birth defect, while DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid, helps support the normal development of the brain for both mother and baby.

The CEO of the company Susan Johnson commented that she had a family history of heart disease and as such was ‘made very aware of the benefits of maintaining heart health’. Each CocoHeart truffle contains an active form of CoQ10 that promotes sustained, healthy energy levels while providing antioxidant protection for vital organs such as the heart. CoQ10 is one of the most powerful known lipid-soluble antioxidants. Johnson added. “CocoHeart presents chocolate-lovers with a way to indulge in a great-tasting, upscale truffle while receiving the added benefit of supporting their hearts.”

The CocoPMS chocolates have added anti-inflammatory compounds which, as well as helping to reduce stomach cramps and headaches, give the chocolates a great tasting berry flavour. As many as one in three women suffer from PMT during the two weeks before they menstruate and symptoms include mood swings, depression, stomach cramping and excruciating pain. Chasteberry and Bilberry have been used for thousands of years for their anti-inflammatory properties to help fight the symptoms of PMS.

Although eating healthy chocolates may seem like a novel idea in the UK, the trend is growing in the States with an overall market of just above 2% but increasing all the time. Still, eating chocolates to help mums to be or improve heart health or help with PMT symptoms cannot be bad. I wonder if they can make some that will help you lose weight? Now that would fly off the shelves! All chocolates are available from www.xanconfections.com